Lexus, a division of the Japanese auto giant, Toyota, has bought the naming rights for the cool-looking velodrome on I-75 and Mack in Detroit, Automotive News reports.
The eye-catching indoor sports facility, owned and operated by the nonprofit organization Detroit Fitness Foundation opens in January.
Officially named the Lexus Velodrome, the $4-million facility will house a 166-meter indoor cycling arena, lanes for walking, running and skating, and an infield for exercise classes and other events, reports Anisa Jibrell of Automotive News. It will be the second velodrome in the U.S. Toyota Motor Corp. did not disclose terms of the multi-year naming rights deal.
"We had been looking for an opportunity to get more involved, and more ingrained in the city and Lexus has a pretty firm platform and relationship with cycling already, on both the amateur [and] professional level," a Lexus spokesman tells Automotive News. "So once we found out the velodrome was going to be in Detroit, it seemed like a fit made in heaven. We see cycling as kind of a format or platform for reaching out to affluent millennials, people who are prone for physical fitness."
Dale Hughes, executive director of the Detroit Fitness Foundation, tells The Detroit News the velodrome will offer free access for children, free walking time for senior citizens, and scheduled bicycle racing and training. An anonymous donor is funding the project.
